Earlier this month, Walter Investment Management Corp. announced its plan to reduce $800 million in debt by filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy had been approved by a federal court.
At the time, Walter said that it expected to exit the bankruptcy proceedings at the end of this month, Jan. 31, 2018 to be exact.
Well, it’s January 31, and the company isn’t ready to emerge from bankruptcy quite yet.
Walter announced Wednesday that “while it remains on track to complete the work necessary” to exit bankruptcy, it won’t be doing so today.
According to Walter, it now anticipates exiting bankruptcy no earlier than Friday, Feb. 2, 2018.
Walter originally filed for bankruptcy back in December.
At the time, the company said that it was taking the action to eliminate $800 million in debt and place the company on firmer footing going forward.
“The actions taken today are intended to reduce the company’s debt, strengthen its balance sheet and better enable Walter to focus on its business, including the growth of its origination and servicing businesses, new technology, innovation, and other areas that are critical to the company’s success,” the company said in December. “The company remains strongly committed to serving its customers by enabling their dreams of homeownership and caring for them throughout their homeownership lifecycle.”
The move came after years of losses taking a toll on the company’s bottom line.
In 2016, the company posted a total net loss for the year to $529.2 million, or $14.71 per share, compared to a net loss of $263.2 million, or $7 per share, in 2015.
And 2017’s results weren’t much better. Through the first three quarters of 2017, Walter posted a total net loss of $213.86 million.
While the company remains in bankruptcy, the company’s prominent subsidiaries, Ditech Financial and Reverse Mortgage Solutions, continued to operate thanks to separate financing agreements.